Poop and the Aftermath

My grandfather always said that if you don't learn something every day, you have wasted your day. Since the day he first said that to me, I have tried to learn something new. Some have turned out to be little things, some that I thought were little things have actually been life lessons, some "big things" have proven not to be, and I will never make macaroni and cheese with a tablespoon of dry mustard even if a world-renowned chef says it is delicious.

Until now, I knew that septic tanks were where waste went when living in areas without large sewer systems.  Until I went off to college I lived in a house with a septic tank.  I knew they had to be pumped from time to time, and smelled real bad when opened for pumping, but I never thought that disposing of poop would be an interesting subject. Sure the whole idea of eat-process-dispose-flush-septic/sewer/hole-in-the-ground can be a lesson in creative engineering, and require more physics than I can wrap my head around, but I never thought it would be the subject of a book that I could not put down.

"The Septic System Owner's Manual" is a book about dealing with what you ate yesterday today.  A combination of technical-but- interesting text and illustrations make it a book that has been hard for me to put down.  The book has everything from design to maintenance to information on the new composting toilets.  I have learned how soil types and bacteria play a prominent role in waste disposal.  I have learned about the good and bad, the right and wrong, the icky and not so icky about septic systems.

The author is one of those people who would make a great dinner guest, or be someone to sit next to on a transcontinental flight.   Lloyd Kahn is the Editor-In-Chief of Shelter Publications, writes a very interesting blog, and from his blog and books I have read, knows a lot about a lot of things,  had a great deal of experience in doing many, and is not afraid to try something new. He has written books on building, architecture, health and fitness and many other subjects.  He is a great storyteller, which is essential when writing a book about septic tanks.

And the way the chapters are written, in short, concise chapters, it could rival People Magazine for what to read when.....

The First Day of Spring

It is hard to believe that tomorrow is the first day of spring. Usually, in our humble little part of the Mitten State, the first day of spring is marked by either snow or freezing rain. Tomorrow, however, is forecast to be much like today, near or a little above 80 degrees.

Which means it is time to put away the snowblower stuff, and haul out the stuff needed for the summer. The lawn mower is out and running, snow shovels put away, but close by because I still don't trust Michigan weather, and the first of the rain barrels has been put out.

This year, the plan is to water the gardens using only accumulated rain water. So the number of barrels will increase from one to four. Possibly five or six, but I am content to see how we do with one.

Rain Reserve 

When I went to re-attach the barrel to the Rain Reserve diverter, it was cracked along the bottom edge, where the light orange stain is located on the bottom right-hand corner of the unit. The repair was easy, with a little pvc cement.  I thought this thing was bomb-proof, as it has seen many winters in sub-zero temperatures.  This year, it looks like it got clogged with the little asphalt particles from the roof, which then froze along with the left over water, and the thing cracked.  Here is information on how the Rain Reserve system works.

Even though the thing cracked, I am still a happy customer.

We bought ours, and the barrel, from Sustain Dane in Madison, WI.  Sustain Dane is a pretty amazing organization, and one of the early leaders in using rain barrels to water urban gardens.  If I remember right, one of the members of Sustain Dane developed the Rain Reserve idea.  The barrel is a recycled Mountain Dew syrup container.  If in Madison, check out Sustain Dane.  But if you plan to buy a barrel from them and take one home in your car, make sure you have a way to get it home.  They take up a lot of space in a car.

More on the barrel system as it progresses.

We have plants!

It looks like this year's crop is off to a successful start. We have four varieties of tomato, three onion (including those from our own seed!), cilantro, basil and even "mystery beans."  The mystery beans may not be a mystery to those who truly know beans, but they were rolling around in the bottom of the seed box, and I have no idea what they are.

Plants as of March 12, 2012

Last year we did not have nearly as many plants sprout as have so far this year.  The only difference between the years is this year I used melted snow to start the seeds rather than tap water.  Our city water here has such a high concentration of chlorine that it often smells like a swimming pool.  My plan is to water only with rain water from here on, and see what that difference brings in plant health and yield.

Better late....

All warm and nestled in their beds.....

The garden planting did not start until today. My best intentions were to have it started two weeks ago, but life happens, and projects jump up. So today it was started. Basil, dill, cilantro, onions, peppers and tomatoes were all started and put on "the rack" in the basement with heating pads under their little feet and grow lights shining down upon them. And to the local enforcers, I AM PLANTING VEGETABLES!!!!!

"The Rack"

"The Rack" is my somewhat custom planting stand built with plant heating pads and two florescent light fixtures that I bought for about $5 each, on an "indoor greenhouse" that we picked up a couple of years ago at Family Farm and Home for under $30. Along with my homemade starter mix, peat moss, vermiculite and a little compost and a bucket of melted snow, we hope to get a good rate of sprouting. I used melted snow because the water here in Mason is very loaded with chlorine, and I think that may have been the reason nothing wanted to sprout last year.

In a week we should have a good indication on how this growing season is progressing.